R is for Rosydyon Tower the seat of Sir W. de Crespigny Bt

Among a collection of images relating to the Champion de Crespigny family, I came across an image of a drawing of Rosydyon Tower, the seat of Sir W. de Crespigny Bt. The drawing is said to have been done by Mary Catherine Champion de Crespigny (1810-1858), the youngest of Sir William and Lady Sarah de Crespigny's ten children. Mary married John Brigstocke (1791-1858).

Sir William de Crespigny (1765-1829) was the second baronet, succeeding in 1818 to the baronetcy on the death of his father Sir Claude Champion de Crespigny (1734-1818).  In 1786 William  married the Right Honourable Lady Sarah Windsor (1763-1825), a daughter of the 4th Earl of Plymouth.

Sir William's entry in Burke's Peerage of 1830 mentions Rhosydyon Tower, Carmarthenshire in Wales, as one of Sir William's three country seats. His town residence was Champion Lodge at Camberwell.

Burke's Genealogical and Heraldic History of Peerage, Baronetage and Knightage, Volume 3, 1830, page 204

Rhosduon Tower is mentioned in Buildings of Wales,  referring to a plaque memorialising Lady Sarah de Crespigny:

Her husband built Rhosduon Tower in the parish c. 1820, a castellated toy fort, long demolished.

Rhosduon Tower was near the village of Pencarrag, in south-west Wales.

In 1825 Lady Sarah de Crespigny died at Rhosdyon Tower.

"FASHIONABLE ARRIVALS." Morning Post, 27 Sept. 1825. British Library Newspapers, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4bRUr9. Accessed 28 Mar. 2017.

Sir William de Crespigny died on 28 December 1829 in London.  The estate was advertised for sale a few months later.

"Multiple Classified ads." Morning Post, 22 May 1830, p. 4. British Library Newspapers, tinyurl.galegroup.com/tinyurl/4bRXy0.

Notes

I have spelt the name of the tower in the various ways it appears in each of the sources.

Kelmarsh Hall is in Northamptonshire. It is presently operated by a trust set up in 1982 by Valencia Lancaster (1898-1996),  Valencia was the grand daughter of the fourth baronet. Many Champion de Crespigny pictures and records are held at Kelmarsh Hall.  Some of the pictures can be viewed at https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/search/collection:kelmarsh-hall-713

Carmarthenshire and CeredigionVolume 6 of Buildings of Wales by Thomas Lloyd, Julian Orbach, Robert Scourfield published by Yale University Press, 2006.  page 363.

E is for Exile

George Napier Sprod (1919 - 2003) was my second cousin twice removed on the Cudmore side of my family, one of my grandmother's many second cousins. His grandmother Sara Cudmore was the sister of James Francis Cudmore, my grandmother Kathleen's grandfather.

George Sprod in 1945 from CARTOONS OF LIFE IN PRISON CAMPS. (1945, November 17). The Australian Women's Weekly (1933 - 1982), p. 12. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55465755

 George Sprod enlisted in the Australian Army in 1940. He put his age up by one year. His mother was his next of kin. He served as a gunner with the 2/15 Field Regiment.

World war 2 nominal roll entry for George Sprod retrieved from http://www.ww2roll.gov.au/Veteran.aspx?serviceId=A&veteranId=152553

 The 2/15th Field Regiment were in Singapore from mid 1941. They served in Malaya and in January 1942 provided artillery support for the infantry withdrawal along the Malayan Peninsula towards Singapore. In February 1942 the British forces in Singapore surrendered to the Japanese. Members of the 2/15th were imprisoned at Changi. The War Memorial's history records

members of the 2/15th found themselves members of parties bound for the camps along the Thailand-Burma Railway and in Borneo, Japan, French Indochina, Java, Sumatra, and Malaya. These men endured the worst horrors of Japanese captivity. Of the 556 officers and men who became prisoners, 294 died. The surviving prisoners were liberated in late August 1945 and began returning to Australia almost immediately.

As a child George Sprod submitted drawings, stories, and short articles to the Adelaide Mail newspaper. For example,

Fairyland of the Fungi. (1933, July 8). The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1954), p. 2 Supplement: SUNBEAMS. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58623064

Old Ship. (1933, July 22). The Mail (Adelaide, SA : 1912 - 1954), p. 3 Supplement: SUNBEAMS. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article58626325

He went to Sydney to try his luck as a cartoonist , riding his bicycle as far as Hay, New South Wales, a distance of about 400 miles (660 kilometers ). There he sold his bicycle and continued the rest of the way by train. He had various jobs before enlisting in the army.

As a prisoner in Changi Singapore, Sprod met the English cartoonist Ronald Searle (1920-2011). In September 1944 they founded and produced the fortnightly magazine "Exile". There were ten issues. After a few numbers of the Exile Sprod decided that he would like to produce a journal with Australian appeal, which he called"Smoke-Oh" which ran for two issues only.

Illustration by Ronald Searle from the FEPOW (Far East prisoners of war) magazine 'Exile', September 1944. Image retrieved from http://ronaldsearle.blogspot.com.au/2008/02/changi-gaol-2.html

Cover of the second edition of "Smoke-Oh" from February 1945 with three candles representing the three years that they had been held prisoner of war. From Smoke-oh. (1945, November 17). The Australian Women's Weekly (1933 - 1982), p. 12. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55465753

One of the cartoons that appeared in Smoke-Oh and was reproduced in the Australian Women's Weekly from CARTOONS OF LIFE IN PRISON CAMPS. (1945, November 17). The Australian Women's Weekly (1933 - 1982), p. 12. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55465755

 Sprod and Searle also painted murals in a club within the Sime Road camp.

SECRET WIRELESS SET. (1945, October 12). Cairns Post (Qld. : 1909 - 1954), p. 5. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article42454880

 When he returned from the war George Sprod and his brothers made a short film called Christmas Crackers, re-enacting the family reunion when George and his brothers and brother-in-law returned from the war. The film is now held by the National Film and Sound Archive.

George Sprod in a screenshot from Christmas Crackers

George also gave an interview to the Australian Women's Weekly and wrote about his experiences for the Sydney Morning Herald, both articles illustrated with some of his cartoons.

After the war George Sprod was a successful cartoonist, eventually working for Punch magazine.

Nearly forty years after his experiences as a prisoner he wrote a memoir which again looked at the humorous side of life as a prisoner, though it did not overlook the misery and cruelty.

Sprod, George (1981). Bamboo round my shoulder : Changi, the lighter side. Kangaroo Press, Kenthurst [N.S.W.] copy held by the State Library of Victoria

George Sprod died in Sydney in 2003.



Sources

• CARTOONS OF LIFE IN PRISON CAMPS. (1945, November 17). The Australian Women's Weekly (1933 - 1982), p. 12. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55465755 
• 2/15th Field Regiment Australian War Memorial History https://www.awm.gov.au/unit/U54405/
• Valerie Grove (6 May 2010). So Much To Tell. Penguin Books Limited. pp. 25 retrieved from https://books.google.com.au/books?id=yVjvi7lhBVoC&pg=PP25
• Jones, Matt. "Changi Gaol 2." Ronald Searle Tribute. Matt Jones, 26 Feb. 2008. <http://ronaldsearle.blogspot.com.au/2008/02/changi-gaol-2.html>.
• Japanese Danced with Rage. (1945, November 3). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 9. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article17958642 
• CARTOONS OF LIFE IN PRISON CAMPS. (1945, November 17). The Australian Women's Weekly (1933 - 1982), p. 12. Retrieved from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article55465755 
• "A Funnier Side of Life, Even in War." Sydney Morning Herald 10 May 2003. <http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/05/09/1052280441984.html>.  
• Bryant, Mark. "George Sprod Writer and Illustrator Best Known for His 'Punch' Cartoons." The Independent [United Kingdom] 16 Apr. 2003. <http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/george-sprod-36440.html>.  

Related posts:

• My grandmother's cousins 
• Sepia Saturday 192 : John Chauncy Champion de Crespigny (1908 - 1995)  

Martha Berkeley : The first dinner given to the Aborigines 1838 (Adelaide)

Martha Berkeley née Chauncy (1813 - 1899) was my third great grand aunt, the sister of Philip Chauncy (1816 - 1880), my great great great grandfather. Martha arrived in Adelaide South Australia in February 1837 on the John Renwick with her husband and her unmarried sister Theresa (1807 - 1876). They arrived just six weeks after the Proclamation of the Province on 28 December 1836.

Martha Berkeley self-portrait c. 1849. Art Gallery of South Australia.

Martha has been described by the Art Gallery of South Australia as Australia's second professional female painter (Mary Morton Allport who arrived in Hobart in 1831 being the first). Theresa was Australia's first female sculptor.

One of Martha Berkeley's most notable works is a watercolour painting of the  first dinner given to the Aborigines on 1 November 1838.

Advertising. (1838, October 27). South Australian Gazette and Colonial Register (Adelaide, SA : 1836 - 1839), p. 1. Retrieved March 6, 2015, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31750198

Berkeley Martha, The first dinner given to the Aborigines 1838, Art Gallery of South Australia

[Martha Berkeley's] major work is a large watercolour, The First Dinner Given to the Aborigines (AGSA), depicting the three Adelaide tribes being entertained by Governor Gawler on 1 November 1838. The Aborigines sit awaiting the distribution of biscuits, meat, tea and blankets, while their three chiefs, dressed in new jackets provided by the settlers, stand together at the inner edge of the circle surrounding the Governor, the Protector of Aborigines and their wives. Behind the Aborigines is a standing ring of settlers, which includes obvious portraits. Berkeley added a pencil description of the event on the back of the painting in 1847, which confirms her aim of recording an important historical event for posterity. (Kerr, Joan. "Martha Maria Snell Berkeley." Design & Art Australia Online. Design & Art Australia Online, 15 Oct. 2014. Web. 6 Mar. 2015. <http://www.daao.org.au/bio/martha-maria-snell-berkeley/biography/>.)

Among works by Martha Berkeley held by the Art Gallery of South Australia is a fan that she painted probably in the 1840s.

Berkeley, Martha, watercolour on silk, ivory, Art Gallery of South Australia

I do not know if this was Martha's fan or if she painted it for somebody else. It might have been used at a levée such as that described in May 1840 celebrating the Queen's birthday. Martha and her husband, Captain Berkeley, are mentioned as attending. The 1840 levée was followed by a dinner and presentation to the Aborigines similar to the one painted by Martha in 1838.

THE QUEEN'S BIRTHDAY. (1840, May 30). South Australian Register (Adelaide, SA : 1839 - 1900), p. 6. Retrieved March 6, 2015, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article27441466

Also mentioned in the article as being present at the 1840 levée were Miss Kemmis, who would later marry Martha's brother Philip, and Martha's sister, Theresa, now Mrs Walker, and her husband Captain Walker.


References

• Art Gallery of South Australia & Radford, Ron, 1949- & Hylton, Jane, 1950- (1995). Australian colonial art : 1800-1900. Art Gallery Board of South Australia, Adelaide
• Hylton, Jane & Berkeley, Martha, 1813-1899 & Walker, Theresa, 1807-1876 & Art Gallery of South Australia. Board & South Australia. Women's Suffrage Centenary Steering Committee (1994). Colonial sisters : Martha Berkeley & Theresa Walker, South Australia's first professional artists. Art Gallery Board of South Australia, Adelaide
• THE QUEEN'S BIRTHDAY. (1840, May 30). South Australian Register (Adelaide, SA : 1839 - 1900), p. 6. Retrieved March 6, 2015, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article27441466
• Kerr, Joan. "Martha Maria Snell Berkeley." Design & Art Australia Online. Design & Art Australia Online, 15 Oct. 2014. Web. 6 Mar. 2015. <http://www.daao.org.au/bio/martha-maria-snell-berkeley/biography/>.